By Tiffany R., PMAC

When I started in podiatry back in 2014, I had no idea what a bunion was. Bunions are a three dimensional deformity caused by an unstable joint. Most often it is misunderstood as a bony prominence that simply needs shaved off. When in reality, it’s a misalignment issue. People can live most of their life without bunion pain but the majority of people have pain shortly after the deformity happens. People believe that bunions form from wearing tight shoes. This is a myth. Bunions actually are hereditary. That’s right! You got your bunion from Grandma Betty who got it from her mother or grandmother. But don’t worry there are ways to fix your bunion. The most common procedure for bunion correction is an Osteotomy or what many call a traditional bunionectomy, which is the cutting and shaving method. Did you know that only 1 in 3 patients have success with this? That’s 70% of patients that have their bunion come back!

The other solution to bunion correction is the triplane correction. This is the procedure that corrects the bunion at its rotated and misaligned joint, the tarsometatarsal (TMT) joint. By using instruments to rotate the metatarsal back into its anatomical correct position and then using plates at the TMT joint to keep it in alignment. On average, surgeons who perform this triplane correction vs the traditional bunionectomy are seeing a 2% recurrence rate. The results really speak for itself. Dr. Paul Dayton and Dr. Mindi Dayton, are foot and ankle surgeons that have originated the Lapiplasty which is the 3D fix for bunions. I have seen hundreds of patients come into our clinic in pain with their bunions, have the triplane correction and are now living pain free. The post op protocol is limited narcotics and the patient is walking 3-4 days after surgery. Before having your bunion operated on, I suggest you do your research and choose the better option.